comicbookGRRRLDo not offend the chair leg of truth; it is wise and terrible.

Marvel continue to tempt me with their extraordinary cover designs that are leaving many other publishers in the shade. Coming to Fearless Defenders blind of recent continuity, I had high hopes for this all female line-up, and was promptly swept off my feet.

...Yes there are tits. There is indeed ass. But for the first time, I get the sense that this is cheesecake that isn’t being aimed primarily at the male readers. There is a whole other demographic out there that loves reading about smart, sassy women who happen to be fantastically gorgeous without being objectified for the male gaze.

Those familiar with my writing here and elsewhere will perhaps know that the topic of “women in comics” is pretty much my thing. Feminism and comics history informs much of what I write, while the specific history of women creators (and women characters) within the medium is my actual field of research. But I’m not the only one that mixes academia and a love of comics, as the creative team behind My So-Called Secret Identity shows.

Will Brooker, Batman scholar and academic author, is on writing duties, alongside professional artists Suze Shore and Sarah Zaidan, who also has a PhD in the comics field. I first heard from Will last year after he read an article I wrote about Barbara Gordon, and he talked about plans he had concerning a new kind of female superhero. Fast forward to 2013, and the first issue of MSCSI has launched to high praise indeed.

Sometimes a book comes out that I’m so ridiculously excited about I get paranoid that I’m going to be disappointed in some way. And then it arrives and turns out to be even better than I hoped for. It becomes the book I take everywhere with me to thrust in people’s faces and say, “READ”. That book is this book.

The Adventures of Superhero Girl is a strip you may have heard of already. It’s a webcomic by the fantastically proficient cartoonist Faith Erin Hicks, who has a whole host of graphic novels to her name (Friends with Boys, Brain Camp, Zombies Calling and the upcoming Nothing Can Possibly Go Wrong). I say webcomic, but although it is all available to read online for free, it was actually created for a local newspaper. And it is fabulous.

A spoiler-free personal review of the latest League of Extraordinary Gentlemen book, the graphic novella Nemo: Heart of Ice.

I say personal as it was near impossible for me to put aside my prior feelings when it came to reading this comic, and yet I felt compelled to review it in some manner after racing my way through it in a thoroughly enjoyable manner.

A little review that I was compelled to write through sheer joy is now up at The Beat. Young Avengers #1 ladies and gentlemen, complete with female gaze(!!), Kid Loki being mischievous, Billy and Teddy being adorable, Miss America Chavez being kickass, Noh-Varr being delicious, and Kate fucking Bishop being amazing as always.

Comics have their own rhythm and their own page beats, but some are a more exhilarating ride than others. Young Avengers #1 is seven pages in before it lists the credits – not that I’ve noticed after being ripped from my reality and transplanted in theirs – complete with the song title that a character starts dancing to on page three. The Ronettes are suddenly blasting in my mind, replaying the previous cute Kate Bishop and Noh-Varr interaction and hyperkinetic action sequence with that drum beat and hip swinging harmonies.

It’s humming away in the background as I read through dramatic scenes and emotional smooching between Billy and Teddy (be my, be my baby), looping around again as fan-favourite Kid Loki appears (ohsince the day I saw you, I have been waiting for you) and the frankly awesome Miss America bursts on to the scene (you know I will adore you ’til eternity). And finally, completely disarming me moments before the shock ending (whoah oh oh wtf).

2012 has been an extraordinary year for comics, and 2013 is shaping up to be even hotter. I've had my eye on a few projects behind the scenes, and this is one of my picks for freshest début of the year. Liberator, a new kind of hero, a hardcore Animal Man rooted in realism rather than superpowers, digging deep into the political power of comics and unleashing a new front for animal activism and sequential creativity.

Launched on Kickstarter today, the 4 issue mini has already recieved praise from Scott Snyder, Steve Niles, and Jimmy Palmiotti amongst others. All the info is at the Kickstarter page, so go and check it out! In the meantime, hit the jump for an exclusive interview with writer Matt Miner and backup artist Yasmin Liang - and take a note of that last name in particular, because she is a real rising star.